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The Empowered Leader Podcast: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Margaret Williams, MS, ACC
The Empowered Leader is the video podcast goes beneath surface-level leadership advice to name the real tensions leaders navigate inside systems not designed for them; visibility without backlash, authority without permission, and success without self-erasure. Each episode interrogates power, bias, and leadership norms while offering grounded perspective that reframes what’s personal, what’s systemic, and where real choice still exists substack.iprofessionalcoaching.com
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- 2 days ago1h 40m
Primal Scream Friday
Thank you Will Fullwood, Savio P. Clemente, Nabanita, Sharon Rousseau, RLM, and many others for tuning into my live video with Walter Rhein! Join me for my next live video in the app. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit substack.iprofessionalcoaching.com/subscribe
- 5 days ago1h 16m
What is Successful Leadership with Jason Gael
Jason Gael Bio“Just a man making my way in the universe..”Jason Gael is an active content creator and writer on Substack, where he shares a mix of live video discussions, musical interests, and personal stories. He frequently hosts live streams, including conversations alongside collaborators.His profile reflects a strong passion for music and pop culture, featuring posts about classic rock bands like AC/DC, 80s alternative groups like Mary’s Danish, and fond family anecdotes (such as his uncle’s dedication to actor Tim Curry). Additionally, he engages with contemporary political and cultural commentary, noting his interest in NPR programs and political interviews.Currently, he has an engaged audience of over 300 subscribers on the platform.We would like to thank all of those in attendance. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit substack.iprofessionalcoaching.com/subscribe
- 6 days ago1h 11m
Ask Me Anything (AMA) with Margaret Williams, MS, ACC
Thank you Diane, EG, Shauna Rae, Gilda Johnson, Judith Kipp Norris, and many others for tuning into my live video! Join me for my next live video in the app. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit substack.iprofessionalcoaching.com/subscribe
- 1 weeks ago52 min
Before the Lesson Begins with Rebekah Pierce
Rebekah Lynn Pierce - BiographyRebekah Lynn Pierce is an author, playwright, educator, military veteran, and creative entrepreneur. Her writing centers on storytelling, personal transformation, historical fiction, and social justice.Biographical Details & Career Highlights· Military Service & Early Life: Raised in Stockton, California, she served in the U.S. Air Force from 1993 to 1999 before settling in Richmond, Virginia.· Educator & Academic: She has taught English Composition and Literature for over 25 years across public schools, vocational institutions, and universities.· Entrepreneurship & Creative Projects: She founded The Nourishment Collective and Maggie’s Custom Sweet Treats (formerly Maggie’s Cupcake Cafe), and writes The Lemonade Mindset newsletter on Substack, focusing on affirmations and personal growth.Published Works:· Before the Lesson Begins: Using Breath, Reflection, & Affirmations to Inspire Student Learning (Educational Non-Fiction, 2025)· I Love Me More (Women’s Biographies, 2019)· The Secret Life of Lucy Bosman (Historical Fiction, 2014)· On the Cusp of Humanity: A Collection of Short Modern Plays (Drama, 2013)· Murder on Second Street: The Jackson Ward Murders (Historical Mystery, 2010)Thank you to everyone who tuned into my live video! Join me for my next live video in the app. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit substack.iprofessionalcoaching.com/subscribe
- 1 weeks ago17 min
Cognitive Dissonance
When what you’re told and what you see don’t match, believe what you see.He says he’ll change. Nothing changes.She says she’s happy for you. She hasn’t asked one question about it.They say the door is always open. You knocked twice and nobody came.Somebody says “we’re fine,” and you’re lying awake at two in the morning doing math on a life that doesn’t add up.And underneath all of it, a low grinding in your chest. Two things that cannot both be true, running at the same time.Hear me on this. That grinding is not anxiety. It’s not oversensitivity. It’s not you being difficult.It’s you knowing something.The only question, the one this whole piece turns on, is what you do with what you know.What It Actually IsCognitive dissonance is a psychologist’s phrase for something you already know by feel. The discomfort of holding two contradicting things at once.What I was told versus what I saw.What I believe about this person versus how this person treats me.Who I say I am versus what I keep tolerating.Here’s what the textbook underplays. The mind can’t stand that grind for long. It’s built to resolve contradiction, and it will, quickly, quietly, and if you’re not watching, in whatever direction is cheapest.Changing your life is expensive.Changing your mind about what you saw is free.So the mind, left alone, edits the evidence. Maybe I misread it. Maybe he meant well. Maybe this is just how it is for everybody.The discomfort was never the problem. It was the one part of you working exactly right.The grinding isn’t the malfunction. It’s the truth trying to get your attention. The problem is what we do to make it stop.What You’re Told, and What You SeeHere’s the rule I’d give you if I could only give you one.When what you’re told and what you see don’t match, believe what you see. Every time.What you’re told is the words. The promises. The apology that arrives right on schedule. The version of the story somebody repeats until it starts to sound like history.What you see is the behavior. Who shows up. Who calls back. What happens after the apology. How somebody treats you when there’s nothing in it for them.Words are cheap and behavior is expensive. That’s the whole reason behavior tells the truth.Now watch what capable women do with that, because we were trained to do it. We doubt our own eyes before we doubt the words.We were graded our whole lives on being agreeable. On giving the benefit of the doubt. On not making it a thing.So when the words and the behavior don’t match, we settle it by deciding we’re the one who got it wrong.We convict the witness. And the witness was us.You settled it by overruling your own eyes. That’s a win for the story. It has never once been a win for the truth.How It Gets Used Against YouUnderstand this clearly. Some of the dissonance in your life is not an accident. It’s manufactured.Somebody who tells you you’re the most important thing in their life while handing you whatever’s left over isn’t confused. They’re counting on you to settle the contradiction in their favor.The friend who is warm to your face and silent when it actually counts is running the same play.And the manipulator’s version is the sharpest of all. Create the gap between what they say and what they do, then punish you for noticing it.“That never happened.”“You’re remembering it wrong.”“You’re too sensitive.”One goal: keep you so busy doubting what you saw that you never get around to doing anything about it.Then there’s the dissonance we manufacture ourselves. That one’s harder to admit.Eleven years into something that stopped fitting eight years ago. The grind in your chest every Sunday night, settled week after week with “but I’ve put so much into this.”The belief we protect hardest is the one we’ve already paid for. That isn’t loyalty. It’s a story we keep because we’re the one who told it.Imposed or self-made, the pattern is identical. The evidence threatens something comfortable, so the evidence gets edited.Whoever talks you out of trusting your own eyes gets to write your story. And whoever writes it decides how it ends.Settling It in the Right DirectionIt always gets settled. The only question is which way.There are three ways out of the grind. Two of them are honest.You can change what you believe, because what you saw genuinely showed you something new. That’s learning, and it should happen regularly. Sometimes you had somebody wrong. Sometimes the story you carried about a person, a place, or yourself doesn’t survive the evi
- 2 weeks ago1h 0m
Using the Enneagram to be Your Authentic Self
Career & Background* Corporate Experience: She has over 15 years of program management experience across various domains. Notably, she served as a Senior Program Manager and Amazon Bar Raiser, where she conducted hundreds of candidate interviews for diverse corporate roles.* Hire Possibilities: She is the founder of Hire Possibilities, a consultancy, publication, and coaching practice dedicated to helping job seekers, hiring managers, and small business owners navigate interviews and career transitions.* Education: She holds a degree in Communications from the Edward R. Murrow College of Communication at Washington State University.Author & Publications* She authored the book The Self-Aware Interview: Essentials for Every Enneagram Type, which combines behavioral interviewing frameworks (such as the STAR method) with Enneagram personality insights to help candidates show up authentically. Publish Date: May 3, 2026. Available in Kindle, hardcover, and paperback.* She writes the Substack publication Hire Possibilities, focusing on interviewing, career transitions, self-awareness, and workplace dynamics.Talking Points: Using Enneagram to be Your Authentic SelfThe Enneagram can be useful as a framework for self-reflection, but the empirical research on its reliability and validity is mixed. A 2021 systematic review examined 104 independent samples and reached that conclusion. PubMed· The Enneagram is about awareness, not labels. It can provide a framework for examining recurring personality patterns, motivations, strengths, and areas for development (Daniels & Price, 2009; Riso & Hudson, 1999). Des Moines Public Library Catalog· Authenticity begins with self-awareness. Using the Enneagram as a reflective tool can encourage individuals to observe habitual patterns and consider how those patterns affect personal and interpersonal functioning (Chestnut, 2013; Riso & Hudson, 1999). Folsom Public Library· Look beneath behavior to motivation. Enneagram approaches emphasize understanding the motivations and patterns associated with different personality types rather than focusing exclusively on observable behavior (Daniels & Price, 2009). Camden County Library Catalog· Recognize strengths and blind spots. Self-observation can help individuals recognize both strengths and less productive patterns, creating opportunities for intentional personal development (Chestnut, 2013). Google Books· Use the Enneagram as a developmental tool, not an excuse. Knowing your type should not become justification for behavior. The greater value comes from recognizing habitual patterns and developing greater flexibility in how you respond (Riso & Hudson, 1999).· Apply it carefully in coaching and leadership development. Research provides some evidence supporting the Enneagram’s use for personal and spiritual growth, but the overall empirical evidence regarding its reliability and validity remains mixed (Hook et al., 2021). Wiley Online LibraryReferencesChestnut, B. (2013). The complete Enneagram: 27 paths to greater self-knowledge. She Writes Press. Folsom Public LibraryDaniels, D. N., & Price, V. A. (2009). The essential Enneagram: The definitive personality test and self-discovery guide (Rev. ed.). HarperOne. Des Moines Public Library CatalogHook, J. N., Hall, T. W., Davis, D. E., Van Tongeren, D. R., & Conner, M. (2021). The Enneagram: A systematic review of the literature and directions for future research. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 77(4), 865–883. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.23097 PubMedRiso, D. R., & Hudson, R. (1999). The wisdom of the Enneagram: Th
- 3 weeks ago1h 26m
My Curious Life with Robert Danna & Walter Rhein
Robert Danna BioPhysicist, naval officer, engineer, business leader, and author.Danna served as an officer in the United States Navy, trained and worked as a physicist, practiced as a consulting engineer, and closed his corporate career as an executive at Deloitte. At Bersin by Deloitte, he served as Director, helping launch the firm’s advisory consulting practice and building its core consulting methodologies. Across more than thirty-five years in management consulting, he concentrated on human capital strategy, adult learning, talent management, leadership development, and veteran recruitment (Danna, n.d.-a). Marquis Who’s Who (2024) recognized him for a career spanning more than fifty years.He describes himself as "a progressive, secular humanist… lover of science and reason" and adds, without apology, "You are forewarned" (Danna, n.d.-b, The Authentic Bob Danna section). He lives in Las Vegas, Nevada, with his long-term partner, Laci Loew.The Book: My Curious Life: If My Grandkids Ask About Me, Tell Them ThisIt was published April 8, 2024 (Danna, 2024). It began as a private record for his grandchildren and became a public one, structured in four parts: a five-act life narrative, a deconstruction of his professional selves, a section on self-knowledge, and a closing section on sustained curiosity.Chapter titles include "Growing Up in a Low-Income Home" and "Let’s Talk About Reason, Logic and Being a Skeptic." Kirkus Reviews (2024) called it "an engaging, curiosity-driven journey from the 1960s to the present." It received an International Impact Book Award in April 2025 (Danna, n.d.-b).Laci Loew BioLaci Loew is a global HR analyst, people scientist, and enterprise talent strategist based in Las Vegas, Nevada. She serves as an executive advisor guiding organizations, CEOs, and corporate boards through complex business transformations, leadership alignment, and talent architecture redesigns.Current Leadership Roles* Fellow at the Global Curiosity Institute, co-developing the Curiosity Maturity Model to help organizations measure and scale curiosity as a driver for innovation and resilience.* Board Member at the AI Learning Alliance (AILA), focusing on human-AI collaboration and integrating agentic AI into modern workflows.* Member of the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council and member of the Senior Executive HR Think Tank.Senior ExecutiveProfessional ExperienceWith over 30 to 40 years of workforce experience, Loew has held senior HR leadership, principal analyst, and strategic advisory roles across major global enterprise organizations.Key Areas of Focus & Expertise* Future of Work & AI Partnering: Advising executive teams on deploying agentic AI tools as collaborative working partners alongside employees.* Organizational Strategy & Change: Utilizing evidence-based maturity models to resolve cultural bottlenecks, elevate executive team dynamics, and improve performance management.Senior Executive* Workplace Culture & Inclusion: Promoting psychological safety, equity, and modern workforce engagement strategies.Education & Publications* Education: Holds a Bachelor of Science in Education and Psychology, along with an MBA with a concentration in Human Resources.Senior Executive* Publications: Frequently contributes insights on talent management, leadership, and workplace trends to outlets including Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and the Talent Management Handbook.Walter Rhein’s BioWalter Rhein is an American author, writer, and teacher known for his work spanning fantasy fiction, non-fiction travel writing, and sports memoirs.Early Life & Travel* Background: Raised in northern Wisconsin, he earned a degree in English literature before traveling and living abroad.* Time in Peru: Lived in Lima, Peru, for a decade working as an English teacher, translator, and writer. He currently splits his time between Wisconsin and South America.* Athletics: An avid cross-country skier, he regularly participates in the American Birkebeiner 50km ski race in Hayward, Wisconsin.Notable Works* Beyond Birkie Fever (2010): A sports memoir focused on his experiences with cross-country skiing and the c
- 3 weeks ago1h 18m
Correction Before Correction: Rethinking the Way We Parent with Haide Wall Giesbrecht
Haide (Heidi) Wall-Giesbrecht - Bio* Writer & Content Creator: Author’s reflections and essays focusing on encouragement, the ordinary, and the sacred along life’s journey (including pieces like Fence to Fields).* Counselor & Educator Support: Works professionally as a counselor supporting students and educators.* Core Values & Philosophy: Emphasizes authenticity, showing up as her genuine self across all spaces, and encouraging others intentionally.* Current Projects: Writing a book pitch, pursuing a TED Talk, and engaging in creative practices like The Artist’s Way.Talking Points: Correction Before Correction: Rethinking the Way We ParentFramingMost parenting advice begins at the moment of the child’s behavior. The research begins earlier with the state of the adult in the room.The question is not how do I correct this child. It is what am I correcting from. The correction delivered while dysregulated teaches something different from the one delivered while regulated, even when the words are identical.The first correction in any household is the one the parent makes to themselves.The Mismatch FindingTronick et al. (1978) introduced the still-face paradigm, in which mothers drop their expression to a blank mask mid-interaction. The infant’s distress is immediate and observable.The finding that reframes the parenting conversation came later. Tronick and Gianino (1986) reported that even securely attached dyads are in mismatched states for roughly 70% of face-to-face interaction. Attunement is not the norm. Misattunement is.What distinguishes secure from insecure attachment is not the frequency of matched moments but the reliability of repair. The damage sits in ruptures that are never repaired — where the child is left in distress with no route back.Note on precision: the 70% figure is widely quoted in practitioner literature and originates in this mismatch–repair work. Treat it as an approximate finding from a specific observational context, not a universal constant.You were never required to get it right. You were required to come back.What Correction Actually ProducesGershoff and Grogan-Kaylor (2016) meta-analyzed five decades of research covering more than 160,000 children — the most complete analysis of spanking outcomes to date, and notable for isolating spanking rather than pooling it with broader physical punishment.Thirteen of seventeen mean effect sizes differed significantly from zero, and all indicated increased risk of detrimental outcomes. The authors report a dose–response relationship: more frequent and severe punishment, more child aggression.The finding parents rarely hear is the null one. Spanking was not associated with improved long-term compliance. The only positive outcome was immediate compliance, documented in five studies.It buys the next four minutes at the cost of the next four years.Contested: Present Both SidesBaumrind et al. (2002), responding to Gershoff’s earlier meta-analysis (Gershoff, 2002), argued that such analyses conflate ordinary spanking with harsh or abusive punishment, that effect sizes are small, and that causation may run backward: difficult children attract more punishment rather than punishment producing difficult children.Gershoff and Grogan-Kaylor (2016) address this partly by isolating spanking, and report that effect sizes did not substantially differ between spanking and physical abuse.The defensible position: the correlational evidence is large, consistent, and directionally clear; causal identification remains imperfect; and no body of evidence demonstrates that physical punishment achieves outcomes non-physical approaches do not.The evidence does not say every smacked child is harmed. It says nobody has shown it works better than the alternatives.Reflective Functioning: The Transmission MechanismReflective functioning is the capacity to hold another’s mind in mind to read behavior as arising from an internal state rather than as a problem to suppress.Rosso and Airaldi (2016) examined 39 mother–preadolescent dyads and found that children of mothers with secure attachment representations showed higher reflective functioning than children of insecurely classified mothers, and that maternal reflective functioning was associated with the child’s own.Handle the sample size honestly. Thirty-nine dyads is small. The finding is consistent with a much larger attachment literature, but this study alone does not carry the claim.
About The Empowered Leader Podcast
The Empowered Leader is the video podcast goes beneath surface-level leadership advice to name the real tensions leaders navigate inside systems not designed for them; visibility without backlash, authority without permission, and success without self-erasure. Each episode interrogates power, bias, and leadership norms while offering grounded perspective that reframes what’s personal, what’s systemic, and where real choice still exists substack.iprofessionalcoaching.com
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